#saint charbel

[t0rtademilanes4]

July 24th

“The things that go on within you are more important than those that take place in your life.”

[essence-of-femininity]

[archivist-crow]

On this day:

THE AFTERDEATH OF A SAINT: LEBANON'S HERMIT

On October 9, 1977, Charbel Makhlouf, a monk associated with miracles, was canonized. Born in 1828, Charbel lived in a monastery hermitage in Lebanon. Sleeping on dried leaves with a goatskin cover and a piece of wood for a pillow, the monk rarely spoke, ate only vegetables, fasted regularly, and refused to touch money. He once rescued fellow monks from a poisonous snake by asking the snake to leave. The hermit died while giving Mass on Christmas Eve, 1898.

Brilliant lights appeared around Charbel's grave and shone brightly for forty-five days. After heavy rains flooded the gravesite and pilgrims tried to steal pieces of his remains, the grave was reopened. His fresh-looking body was floating in mud. It was washed, redressed, and placed in a wooden coffin in the monastery chapel. Soon after, an unusual liquid, possibly a mixture of blood and sweat, began to seep out of the body. The clothing had to be changed twice a week, and strips of the soaked fabric were said to have an extraordinary healing abil-ity. Sister Maria Abdel Kamari, a nun who had been near death and bedridden for fourteen years, prayed at his tomb and experienced an almighty surge of energy that cured her completely.

In 1927, doctors examined Charbel's body. Documents declaring it free from decomposition were placed inside a zinc tube. The tube and Charbel were entombed in a wood-lined zinc casket behind bricks in one of the monastery walls. In 1950 liquid soaked through the wall. Opening the tomb revealed Charbel, looking peaceful. The clothes and zinc tube had rotted, and an oily fluid lay three inches deep inside the coffin. It was removed and dispensed. The grave was opened three times prior to 1956. Charbel's body "still has its flexibility as if it were alive." The body began to decompose in 1965, after beatification.

Text from: Almanac of the Infamous, the Incredible, and the Ignored by Juanita Rose Violins, published by Weiser Books, 2009

[marsellabarsoum]

Youssef Antoun Makhlouf was born in 1828, in Bekaa Kafra (North Lebanon). He had a true Christian upbringing, which had given him a passion for prayer. Then he followed his two hermit uncles in the hermitage of the St Antonious Kozhaya monastery and was converted to monastic and hermetical life.

In 1851, he left his family village and headed for the Our Lady of Maifouk monastery to spend his first monastic year, and then he went to the St Maron monastery in Annaya, where he entered the Maronite Order, carrying the name Charbel, a name of one of the Antioch church martyrs of the second century. On November 1st. 1853, he exposed his ceremonial vows in St Maron’s monastery - Annaya. Then he completed his theological studies in the St Kobrianous and Justina monastery in Kfifan, Batroun.

He was ordained a priest in Bkerky, the Maronite Patriarchate, on July 23rd, 1859. He lived 16 years in the St Maron's monastery – Annaya. From there, he entered, on February 15th, 1875, the St Peter & Paul hermitage, which belongs to the monastery. He was a typical saint and hermit, who spent his time praying and worshipping. Rarely had he left the hermitage where he followed the way of the saintly hermits in prayers, life and practice.

St Charbel lived in the hermitage for 23 years. On December 16th, 1898 he was struck with an illness while performing the holy mass. He died on Christmas' eve, December 24th, 1898, and was buried in the St Maron monastery cemetery in Annaya.

Few months later, dazzling lights were seen around the grave. From there, his corpse, which had been secreting sweat and blood, was transferred into a special coffin. Hordes of pilgrims started swarming the place to get his intercession. And through this intercession, God blessed many people with recovery and spiritual graces.

In 1925, his beatification and canonization were proposed for declaration by Pope Pious XI. In 1950, the grave was opened in the presence of an official committee which included doctors who verified the soundness of the body. After the grave had been opened and inspected, the variety of healing incidents amazingly multiplied. A multitude of pilgrims from different religious facets started flocking to the Annaya monastery to get the saint's intercession.

Prodigies reached beyond the Lebanese borders. This unique phenomenon caused a moral revolution, the return to faith and the reviving of the virtues of the soul.

[littleflowerfaith]

Saint Charbel Makhlouf, pray for us.

[statue-art]

Our sculpture factory specializes in customizing various religious figure statues. You can customize the sculpture that suits you according to the material size you need. This saint charbel statue can also be customized for you according to your needs.

[menalovers]

This is probably photoshopped, but looks like Saint a Charbel in Beirut airport. Beautiful picture. I can’t wait to go back to Mar Charbel monastery. Beautiful times.

[inspiredbyjesuslove]